Dark Project is a ransomware operator currently active on public leak sites. Darkfield has indexed 19 public victims claimed by this operator between August 5, 2026. Dark Project is a ransomware group first observed in August 2026 with an apparent primary motivation of financial gain, based on its targeting profile and operational patterns consistent with other profit-driven ransomware actors. As of the time of this writing, no major cybersecurity organizations including CISA, the FBI, Mandiant, or other reputable threat intelligence firms have published detailed public reporting attributing Dark Project to a specific nation-state, threat actor cluster, or affiliated ransomware ecosystem, and it remains unclear whether the group operates as a Ransomware-as-a-Service platform or as an independent closed operation. Based on available victim telemetry, the group has claimed at least 18 known victims across a geographically diverse range of countries, with the United States, United Kingdom, Mexico, the Philippines, and Germany representing its most frequently targeted regions. Its sectoral focus spans manufacturing, healthcare, transportation, hospitality, and education, suggesting an opportunistic targeting methodology rather than a narrowly defined strategic focus, though the inclusion of healthcare and critical infrastructure-adjacent sectors such as transportation warrants continued monitoring. Due to the group's recent emergence and limited public documentation at this time, specific details regarding initial access vectors, encryption implementation, extortion tactics, and tooling remain unconfirmed by open-source intelligence sources, and analysts should treat any further claims with appropriate caution pending corroborating reporting from authoritative sources. Dark Project should be considered an emerging threat actor under active observation.
How we know this. Operator profiles on Darkfield are built from continuous monitoring of every leak site the group is known to operate, cross-correlated with community-curated feeds (RansomLook, ransomware.live, RansomWatch, MISP-galaxy). Status flips from active to inactive when no new disclosure appears for 60 days. MITRE ATT&CK mappings shown in the interactive section below are sourced from CISA, vendor analysis, and the MITRE community catalog — we attribute each technique back to its source. Aliases reflect operator re-brands and affiliate splits.